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Former Ontario prison official arrested after run-in with Bend police

BEND – A former long-time executive at the state prison in Ontario is accused of resisting police and driving under the influence after his arrest in Bend on Thursday, Aug. 19.

Randy R. Gilbertson, 46, of Payette, was arrested just three weeks after being named superintendent of Deer Creek Correctional Institution in Madras.

He has been charged in an information filed in Deschutes County Circuit Court with driving under the influence of intoxicants, interfering with a police officer and attempting to elude. He is scheduled to enter a plea on Sept. 23.

He sought but was denied a court-appointed attorney.

According to the Bend Police Department, an officer stopped Gilbertson at about 2 a.m. in Bend.

“While the officer was conducting a DUII investigation on Randy Ray Gilbertson, he ran from the officer and then resisted arrest,” the police department statement said.

The agency didn’t respond to a request for additional details.

Gilbertson started his career with the Oregon Department of Corrections at the Snake River Correctional Institution in 1999. He rose through the ranks, promoting to captain in 2013.

He took over as superintendent of the Madras prison on Aug. 1 at a salary of $11,168 a month. A Corrections Department official said Gilbertson is on paid leave at home until an internal investigation can be completed.

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